The Secret of Terror Castle is the first book in the detective book series, The Three Investigators. It was written by Robert Arthur and first published on September 12, 1964. In the novel, the Three Investigators search for an authentic haunted house for Alfred Hitchcock's new movie.
The novel was translated to German by Leonore Puschert in 1968. It is the eleventh installment in the audiobook series.
Synopsis[]
Finding a genuine haunted house for a movie set sounds like fun— and a great way to generate publicity for the Three Investigators' new detective agency. But when the boys arrive for an overnight visit at Terror Castle— home of a deceased horror-movie actor— they soon find out how the place got its name![1]
Plot[]
Introduction[]
The introduction was written by Alfred Hitchcock, who claims to have been blackmailed into writing it. He introduces the main characters and location and gives little hints as to how to solve the main story. Lastly, he recommends the novel.
The Three Investigators[]
Jupiter Jones, Peter Crenshaw, and Bob Andrews have recently decided to found their own detective firm. They all gather at the Jones Salvage Yard, where Jupiter prints business cards for them. There, Peter tells his friends that his father has told him that famous filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock is currently looking for a haunted castle for his newest production. After Peter finishes, Jupiter spontaneously announces that they are going to convince Hitchcock to hire them for the job.
Without giving it a second thought, the trio goes to the Universal Studios in Hollywood. Their chauffeur Worthington drives them there in a golden Rolls Royce, which Jupiter previously won in a competition. Once they've arrived there, Jupiter bluffs his way past the security and the secretary to the famous director. Hitchcock initially refuses their request to take over the case because he has already hired two investigators of his own. Jupiter, who was a child actor, imitates Hitchcock as a little boy, which enrages Hitchcock. In turn for Jupiter to never imitate him again, he promises to write an introduction should a novel about them ever be published.
Finding the Castle[]
Later, Bob, who has recently broken his right leg and is therefore exempt from all physical activities, is in the library to find a suitable castle. There, he learns about Stephen Terril's castle, which he deems fit. Terrill, who once a famous actor in silent movies, lost his career when sound was introduced to film, exposing his embarrassing speech impediment. Terrill eventually ended up in large debt and isolated himself in his castle. He only allowed contact with his agent Jonathan Rex, who also represented him in the public. One day, Terril's car was found wrecked and he was pronounced dead.
Morton drives Jupiter and Peter to the castle. As rubble is blocking the road, the two leave Morton's car and walk the rest of the way. As they stand in front of the castle, they are frightened by a bunny and a bat in the dark and feel as though they're hearing music coming from somewhere. When they enter the castle, they hear a voice whisper "Get Out!". Jupiter explains that the voice was probably just an echo of their own. Meanwhile, Peter believes that the portrait of a pirate on the wall just blinked but when they shine a flashlight on it, it turns out to be nothing. As similar events keep happening, discomfort turns to fear and they escape the castle and run back to their car.
Back at the Headquarters, the Three Investigators talk about the events that occurred at the castle. Jupiter notices that neither Peter nor him are able to identify the cause of their sudden outburst of fear. Just then, an anonymous call reaches the Three Investigators, telling them to stay away from the castle.
Solving the Mystery[]
The Three Investigators decide to visit Terrill's manager, Jonathan Rex. Since the castle is in the same direction, Jupiter asks Worthington to stop by there. At the castle, Worthington points out the fresh tire tracks of another car. Shortly after, Jupiter and Peter see Skinny Norris escape the castle with a friend. When the two decide to take a closer look at the castle once again, they get stuck in a crevice after Charles Grant accidentally triggers a debris avalanche.
Jupiter and Peter eventually manage to free themselves and are then told by Worthington that Skinny and his friend, whom they had previously suspected of locking them in there, couldn't be the culprits since they'd already left the premises at the time of the incident. Afterward, the group finally drives to Mr. Rex's place.
Mr. Rex is polite and friendly to Jupiter and Peter but Jupiter notices that he lied when he said that he just did some work in the garden since things simply don't add up. In reality, he already got warned about their arrival by Grant and is now trying to keep the detectives away from the castle by telling them made-up horror stories about it.
Later that day, Uncle Titus tells the detectives about his most recent purchase: an organ that produces sounds that humans can't hear. Afterward, they meet Skinny Norris, who mockingly tells them to go solve the death of a rat instead.
On the way to the Headquarters, Jupiter sprains his ankle, rendering him unable to move around.
Two days later, the three investigators meet again to talk about the case. Mathilda Jones joins them to tell them that a gypsy visited the salvage yard a few days earlier to warn them to stay away from the castle. Jupiter then sends Bob and Peter to the castle in the evening, asking them to find out whether the distance to the castle plays a role in how scared you get.
At the castle, Peter and Bob systematically search through the castle and take several photographs of it. However, they eventually get lost due to the dark and start hearing an organ quietly playing. When they are about to leave the castle, they see a blue phantom in the screening room.
Three days later, the Three Investigators meet at their headquarters. Peter and Bob report back to Jupiter that their fear immediately vanished once they left the castle. When looking at the photographs the boys took, Jupiter notices that the castle is surprisingly well-maintained and that there is almost no dust visible in the photographs.
Jupiter then explains his newly thought-of marker system to the other two: each investigator is assigned a color; Jupiter is white, Peter is blue, and Bob is green.[note 1] Each member receives a piece of chalk in their color so that they can mark things with a question mark in their respective color when they are in need of help.
At night, the Three Investigators return to the castle. There, they find a secret entryway behind a mirror in the dining room. Jupiter discovers that the entryway leads behind the screening room. Suddenly, the organ in the screening room starts playing and fume starts to rise up. The blue phantom reappears.
The Solution[]
| Spoiler warning! This section contains spoilers to the solution of the case. |
Jupiter explains to Peter that he now understands everything and that he has solved the case. He suspects that Stephan Terrill had only faked his death and that he himself is responsible for the haunting of the castle.
When he tries to talk to the blue phantom to confirm his suspicions, Peter and he are subdued by Terrill and Charles Grant, who are dressed up as Arab people and are pretending to be part of a smugglers' ring. They are then tied up and left in a dungeon in the castle. While trapped in there, Jupiter notices that the dungeon, too, has a secret passage leading outside, just like the one they had found in the dining room before.
Meanwhile, Bob and Worthington are starting to worry about the two detectives and search for them in the castle. They, too, discover the secret passage behind the mirror in the dining hall and decide to follow it. After a while, they start hearing Peter and Jupiter crying for help at the end of the passageway and save them.
When Bob and Worthington tell Jupiter that they also found parakeets in the secret entryway, Jupiter suggests that one of the passages might lead to Jonathan Rex as he owns an aviary. He ends up being right and the Three Investigators and Worthington corner Mr. Rex to question him.
Mr. Rex then reveals that he is actually Stephan Terrill in disguise and that he pretended to be his own manager to have a better standing during negotiations. Charles Grant, who had experience as a make-up artist, helped with his disguise, as well as with making the castle seem haunted. For that purpose, they scattered scary props and artefacts across the premise and used machines for the sound effects and fumes. The anonymous phone call to the Three Investigators' headquarters and the gypsy that visited them to tell them to stay away from the castle had also been fabricated by Terrill and Grant, and the latter had even been the gypsy in disguise. The purpose of creating the "Curse of Stephan Terrill" had been to any keep potential buyers away from the castle so that Terrill wouldn't have to sell it.
Back at Alfred Hitchcock's[]
Upon hearing their story, Hitchcock is impressed by the detectives' work. Since they solved the case, he keeps his promise and writes the introduction to their novel.
Jupiter also reveals that Stephan Terrill is planning on marketing the castle as a tourist attraction from now on and that he will screen his old movies there. The entrance and screening fees would then be used to finance the upkeep of the castle.
Lastly, Hitchcock suggests that he has another case lined up for the Three Investigators.
Characters[]
| Character | Voice actor | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Jupiter Jones | Oliver Rohrbeck | Main |
| Pete Crenshaw | Jens Wawrczeck | Main |
| Bob Andrews | Andreas Fröhlich | Main |
| Stephen Terril/Jonathan Rex | Wolf Rahtjen | Antagonist |
| Charlie Grant | Horst Breiter | Antagonist |
| Alfred Hitchcock | Peter Pasetti | Supporting (Narrator) |
| Mathilda Jones | Karin Lieneweg | Supporting |
| Skinny Norris | Andreas von der Meden | Supporting |
| Worthington | Andreas von der Meden | Supporting |
Trivia[]
Gallery[]
Notes[]
- ↑ In the German version, Bob's color is red instead.
References[]
Series Guide[]
| Original Series | ||
|---|---|---|
| N/A | 1 The Secret of Terror Castle |
2 The Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot |
| German Series | ||
| N/A | 1 The Secret of Terror Castle |
2 The Mystery of the Whispering Mummy |
| Audiobooks | ||
| 10 The Mystery of the Whispering Mummy |
11 The Secret of Terror Castle |
12 The Mystery of the Screaming Clock |
| Novels | |
|---|---|
| Previous | Next |
| The Mystery of the Stuttering Parrot | |